We return to looking at origin series again in this Think Education podcast episode and the baton passes from Judith to Chris today.

Chris reflects on his initial career aspirations and how they morphed into a life in international higher education with a seamless (at least in hindsight) journey all mapped out!  Judith and Chris talk about the lessons we learn along the way and how, one thing can quite literally lead to another.  The ability, and freedom, to be open to possibilities is a luxury that often pays off.

Following on from Judith’s honest reflection regarding the challenges of living and working internationally, Chris looks back over his first major professional international move and reflects on his place within this process, what he gained from it and how he navigated the ups and downs. 

Chris talks candidly about what happens at the end of a posting and how this can impact identity, wellbeing and indeed family life.  What happens next is a common question, and indeed concern, for many of us who are working away from our ‘home’ country.

Internationalisation teaches you many things, not least of all that stability is a fluid concept.  We rapidly become more comfortable with chaos and uncertainty, both in our professional and personal lives.  It teaches you the need to be flexible and to roll with the punches.  Life won’t always work out the way you think it will but it will often be quite a ride along the way.    

If you would like to come on the podcast and share your international higher education journey, please do let us know.  We would love to hear from you.

#originstory #internationalhighereducation #pathways #malaysia #teaching #learningcurve #engagement #culture #travel #globalcitizen

In this special episode, we learn about Leif Erikson and what it means to be an explorer.

I asked Sprout what it means to be an explorer and she explained how it is something we can all do, especially with the help of books.  Every book is a chance to visit somewhere new and have new adventures.

In this podcast, Sprout talks about Leif’s travels to America and also talked about how Christopher Columbus never actually went to America, even though we all think he did and he gets credit for it.  She also made sure to tell us that even though explorers ‘find’ new countries, these are often places where people already live.

Sprout gives us some advice on how to learn more about Leif Erikson and talked about the Magic Tree House book series by Mary Pope Osborne, where she first discovered Leif and the Children’s Museum in Copenhagen – part of the National Museum – where kids can play and learn all about being a Viking.  You can even sit in a Viking Ship!!

We hope you enjoy this podcast where Sprout talks about Leif's background, his travels, and even his charming beard!

#explorers #leiferikson #vikings #books #reading #becominganexplorer #adventure #magictreehousebooks

@MaryPopOsborne

@Nationalmuseet

https://www.magictreehouse.com/books/589014/narwhal-on-a-sunny-night

https://en.natmus.dk/museums-and-palaces/the-national-museum-of-denmark/exhibitions/the-childrens-museum/

In today’s Think Education podcast, Judith and Chris discuss the recent Sunday Times article regarding pathways to the UK higher education sector and an excellent piece by Sophie Hogan in the Pie News outlining the issues and realities.

We lamented the manner in which the narrative has been framed by the Sunday Times and the potential damage that this can do the sector and to the people involved throughout.  It is important to establish facts and present them accurately rather than skew the narrative for political gain.

Judith talked passionately about her experience, both practically and from a research perspective, with pathway students.

Our conversation continued to explore the politicization of education and the extent to which higher education is indeed a political concern – particularly international higher education. Education certainly has an economic underpinning but it is possible to be a source of income to an institution and also a highly capable and motivated international student at the same time.

We talked about the ongoing pressure for universities to demonstrate their value within the community and the extent to which this is already going on.

https://thepienews.com/news/sunday-times-pathways-article/

#thepienews #internationalhighereducation #narrative #studentexperience #pathwayproviders #educationalpathways #politicizationofeducation

In this latest Think Education podcast episode, we try something a little different.  As our third book is looking into the more personal nature of international higher education and the journeys taken by those of us inside this wonderful world, we thought we would start with ourselves.

We flipped a coin, and Judith won.  Or lost, depending on how you look at it.

Judith reflects on how she began her career in international higher education – although it wasn’t remotely conceived of as such at the time!  The dreams of driving a truck were replaced with teaching.  This then took her far far away from home, to the land of the rising sun.

Judith talks about her initial career aspirations, the opportunities that arose, the decisions she took, and the challenges she faced and overcame along the way.  In this personal reflection, we learn about the realities of working abroad and away from home and family, the challenges and the loneliness that are perhaps inevitable, and the power we have to take control of this and get the most out of the experience.  It isn’t always easy, but it is almost always worth it.

The journey doesn’t always make sense when you are in the middle but a sort of logic emerges when we look back.

If you would like to come on the podcast and share your international higher education journey, please do let us know.  We would love to hear from you.

#originstory #internationalhighereducation #pathways #japan #teaching #learningcurve #engagement #culture #travel #globalcitizen

In this latest Think Education podcast episode, Judith and Chris talk about the process of beginning book number 3 and how they have become increasingly comfortable with embracing uncertainty.

Building on ideas generated in the first two books, where we looked at the landscape of international higher education (book 1) and the role and identity of universities (book 2), we are turning our attention to the individual.  To the experience and journey.

We talked about the process of idea generation and how we navigate the idea of developing the next book while working on the current one!

We talked about what we have learned writing together over the past few years and the impact that podcasting has had on our ability to develop ideas and to gain new perspectives from all the valuable conversations we have had in the past year.  Listening to people tell their stories was both fascinating and enlightening. It has helped to create ideas and content.

We are looking forward to the opportunity to engage once more with colleagues around the world and to learn from their individual experiences, their origin stories and the lessons they learned along the way.

Writing a book is not necessarily having everything planned or in place (an outline will of course be more than a little useful when approaching possible publishers) and can be about developing an idea and seeing where it takes you.

#writingpartnerships #collaboration #academicresearch #writingabook #ideageneration #community #publishingabook #trilogy

In this latest Think Education podcast episode, Chris and Judith discuss the role of mentors throughout their careers and the journey from mentee to mentor. 

We played around with various titles for this podcast (as you will hear in the episode) but ultimately it is about the journey we take in our careers and the support we receive, and give, during that time.  We find ourselves coming back to the notion of community in our podcasts (and indeed in our writing) and this sense of connection and engagement is at the heart of this conversation.

We talked about the role and importance of good leadership, how you know it when you see it, and how its absence can be all too powerful.  We talked about our own approach to this, and that we have appreciated in others. 

We reflected on the fact that mentors come in all shapes and sizes and are not uniquely found in those more senior to us.  And are not always connected to direct career progression but forms of learning and development all the same.

We would be delighted to hear your stories and experiences about the mentoring experience so please feel free to comment or get in touch.

#mentoring #communication #internationalhighereducation #culturalawareness #careerdevelopment #university #development #leadership #podcast #community

In this first podcast of 2024, Judith and Chris reflect back on the previous year (again) and think about the year to come.

We don’t necessarily have a plan for the direction we would like the podcast to go but we do know that more of the same would be most welcome.  Last year was filled with fascinating and insightful conversations with colleagues from around the world and we look forward to being able to enjoy more again this year.

If you are interested in being a guest on the podcast, please do get in touch and let us know.  We are always open to talking to, and learning from people – we know and don’t know.

#newyearnewconversations #engagement #interaction #internatioanlisation #internationalhighereducation #podcast #thinkeducation #communityofpractice #research #practice

In this, the final Think Education podcast of 2023, Judith and Chris reflect back on a year of podcasting; a year of conversations; and a year of global engagement.

We managed – with a lot of help from our friends – to put up 50 original episodes (we had two repeats over the summer break) and had the opportunity to talk to people from Australia, China, Egypt, Germany Hong Kong, Malaysia, Netherlands, Taiwan, the UAE, the UK, the USA, Wales (of course), and Zimbabwe.

We are grateful to be part of a community of engagement, that we get to learn from others and hopefully, that we get to keep the ideas moving a little bit ourselves too.

Thank you to all who came on the podcast and shared your reflections and insights.

Thank you to all of you who listened.

We look forward to more conversations next year.

Andrew Disbury

Jazreel Goh

Michael Pelletier

Edward Harcourt

Lisa Wallace

Vivienne Stern

Jason Makwabara

Ceri Nursaw

Nigel Healey

Vicky Lewis

Arlene Griffiths

Rachel Soundy

Bola Ibrahim

Mark Garrat

Douglas Proctor

Fabrizio Trifiro

Zeenath Reza Khan

Tendai Charles

Sandra Baroudi

Alfredo Bautista

Cheryl Yu

Angela Yung-chi Hu

Jack Lee

Fion Chooey Boon Lim

Perry Hobson

Hugh Martin

Paula Sanderson

Ahmed Shaban

Leina Shi

Stephanie Martin

Tim Rottleb

In this second part of our conference podcast series Chris and Judith talk about the fun and frivolity of organizing, chairing and running a physical conference.  We have both had experience with this in the past and direct experience lately and we share some tips and tricks we have picked up along the way.

We talked about the creative process involved in developing conference themes and the tremendous value in being able to create a platform for discussion and presentation.

Once you have been on the other side of conference organisation, you have a much higher tolerance and respect for things that may (and most likely will) go wrong.  Judith shared an example of a recent PIE event that involved a massive last minute shift of venue – which they masterfully solved.

We talked about the hope that conferences can in fact be conversations.  We need to bring the coffee break chat into the panel sessions and develop a platform for debate and engagement.

Things that can go wrong, will likely go wrong.  Things you didn’t know could go wrong, will likely do so. Be prepared to vamp.

#conferenceorganisation #chairing #panelsessions #timemanagement #nostupidquestions #ACARI2023 #UUKITNEconference

In this first part of a series on conferences, Judith and Chris discuss recent conference attendance and engagement and reflect on the value of discussion, uncertainty and working through ideas.

Chris reflected on his attendance at COP28 in Dubai and outlined his participation in a panel organised and chaired by Dr Zeenath Reza Khan.  The panel session was Academic Integrity as key competence for UN SDG 13 - Climate Change and brought together speakers for high schools, university, policy makers and students – from university and high school.  Chris talked about his experience being on a panel with no fixed presentation agenda and where speakers reflected on practice and were not defending an institutional position.  This can be liberating.

Judith reflected on her attendance at UKENIC 23 – Reconfiguration and her participation in a plenary session looking at the future of international higher education.  Judith discussed the nature of the event and how the audience make-up can alter the conversation that takes place on stage.  Diversity in the audience, and a move away from a specifically focused academic conversation, provides an opportunity for reflection and debate.

We talked about the need for engagement and reflection and the value in being able to disagree with colleagues.  As a result of the loss of activity and physical engagement during the pandemic, it does seem that we have emerged more willing to share, to be honest and to reflect.

It’s OK not to agree with each other, and even with ourselves at times!

https://www.cop28.com/en/schedule

https://www.ecctis.com/universities%20and%20colleges/Annual%20Conference/Default.aspx 

#conferenceattendance #engagement #sustainabilty #highereducation #COP28 #UKENIC23 #presentationskills #activelistening